Body Image
Extracted from www.edap.org

Body image is . . .

• How you see yourself when you look in the mirror or when you picture yourself in your mind.
• What you believe about your own appearance (including your memories, assumptions, and generalizations).
• How you feel about your body, including your height, shape, and weight.
• How you sense and control your body as you move. How you feel in your body, not just about your body.

Positive body image is . . .

• A clear, true perception of your shape--you see the various parts of your body as they really are.
• You celebrate and appreciate your natural body shape and you understand that a person`s physical appearance says very little about their character and value as a person.
• You feel proud and accepting of your unique body and refuse to spend an unreasonable amount of time worrying about food, weight, and calories.
• You feel comfortable and confident in your body.

Negative body image is . . .

• A distorted perception of your shape--you perceive parts of your body unlike they really are.
• You are convinced that only other people are attractive and that your body size or shape is a sign of personal failure.
• You feel ashamed, self-conscious, and anxious about your body.
• You feel uncomfortable and awkward in your body.

People with negative body image have a greater likelihood of developing an eating disorder and are more likely to suffer from feelings of depression, isolation, low self-esteem, and obsessions with weight loss.

We all may have our days when we feel awkward or uncomfortable in our bodies, but the key to developing positive body image is to recognize and respect our natural shape and learn to overpower those negative thoughts and feelings with positive, affirming, and accepting ones.

Accept yourself -- Accept your body.
Celebrate yourself -- Celebrate your body.

The Media, Body Image, and Eating Disorders

Eating disorders are complex conditions that arise from a variety of factors, including physical, psychological, interpersonal, and social issues. Media images that help to create cultural definitions of beauty and attractiveness are often acknowledged as being among those factors contributing to the rise of eating disorders.

Media messages screaming “thin is in” may not directly cause eating disorders, but they help to create the context within which people learn to place a value on the size and shape of their body. To the extent that media messages like advertising and celebrity spotlights help our culture define what is beautiful and what is “good,” the media’s power over our development of self-esteem and body image can be incredibly strong.

Some Basic Facts About the Media’s Influence in Our Lives:

• According to a recent survey of adolescent girls, the media is their main source of information about women’s health issues (Commonwealth Fund, 1997).
• Researchers estimate that 60% of Caucasian middle school girls read at least one fashion magazine regularly (Levine, 1997).
• Another study of mass media magazines discovered that women’s magazines had 10.5 times more advertisements and articles promoting weight loss than men’s magazines did (as cited in Guillen & Barr, 1994).
• A study of one teen adolescent magazine over the course of 20 years found that in articles about fitness or exercise plans, 74% cited “to become more attractive” as a reason to start exercising and 51% noted the need to lose weight or burn calories (Guillen & Barr, 1994).
• The average young adolescent watches 3-4 hours of TV per day (Levine, 1997).

A study of 4,294 network television commercials revealed that 1 out of every 3.8 commercials send some sort of “attractiveness message,” telling viewers what is or is not attractive (as cited in Myers et al., 1992). These researchers estimate that the average adolescent sees over 5,260 “attractiveness messages” per year.

Resources - Books

Reviving Ophelia by Mary Pipher, Ph.D. Balantine Books, 1994
The Body Betrayed; Women, Eating Disorders, and Treatment. by Kathryn J.Zerbe M.D. American Psychiatric Association Press, Inc. 1993

Making Weight: Men's Conflicts with Food Weight, Shape & Appearance. by Arnold Andersen, M.D., Leigh Cohn, M.A.T. and Thomas Holbrook, M.D. Gurze Books, 2000

Eating Disorder Program: A Guide to Medical Care and Complications. By Philip S. Mehler M.D. and Arnold E. Andersen M.D.  The John Hopkins University Press. 2000